spofford

hi there, my brother and i really like the jato 3.3 and are wondering about its offroad ability. will it have any problems with sand pits, dirt/gravel roads, or lawns? id say id be using mine more offroad then onroad, is this the car for me? also, is there anything you can do to give the jato more clearence and make it more durable if need be, im thinking for rocks or jumping so that we arent constantly replacing parts everytime we go out and use them for a bit. id like something that i can use on a day to day basis without having to drive to the hobby store or buy parts online everyday (or what parts just i stock up on, or buy to prevent my afternoon from being ruined?). i DO NOT plan on racing it, just for recreational use.


thanks in advance for the information and advice


Corey

nothinbetr2do

biggest thing you can do is put better tires on it, these are moabs

annie_himself

Look at the Firestorm, XTM X-Cellerator, GT2, and Losi XXX-NT. In my opinion, they are all better.

sheograth

I have a 3.3, and quite frankly its more of an on road princess than a stadium truck.

twomanytoys

The Jato is just as good as the others mentioned but you do need to do a few things for it to be a great off road truck. First off put bigger tires like Moabs or Yokohama geolanders on 2.2 wheels, RPM a arms front and rear and then a upper chassis brace. Once you do these things it makes an awsome off road truck. I would admit that in stock form it is not good off road because its an on road truck. I think thats why alot of guys dont like them but if you know the simple things to make it a good off road truck it can easily do what the others can do and be just as reliable. If you like the Jato than go for it. Dont let someone talk you out of it because they think its not a good off road truck. It can be a great off road truck very easily. I can say that there are cheaper trucks that are already set up for off road but whats the fun in that. I like to set things up my own way.

spofford

twomanytoys, can i get a link or something for the upper chassis brace please? and will any wheel rim fit on the jato or is there a special type i need to get? also, i assume i will have to glue the tires to the new rims?

twomanytoys

I will have to find the link for the chassis brace. I dont have one because I dont bash. I have not hear alot about broken chassis except from people that bash alot and take a hard hit. As for the wheels you can use a standard 2.2 wheel like HPI agitators, traxxas dish adn some others make them. It has to be for the Jato. Yes you will have to glue the new tires to the wheels but thats not hard.

I use the traxxas white dish wheels and dye them black. They were 10 for all 4. The tires will run about 30-40 for all 4. I got my A arms from ebay for less than 10 a pair. Just doing the tires makes a HUGE difference.

motorhead91

any 2.2 wheel with a 12mm hex for the rear should fit it fine.........there are also 2.2 size bead loc wheels[link]http://www2.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/wti0001p?&I=LXRGT1&P=ML[/link]

spofford

okay thanks alot...

so, to start out if i bought new tires/rims for the jato it would be alot better for "offroading"? or should all these upgrades be done so that it is good for offroading?

motorhead91

its about as durable as most others, but if you carsh at top speed, something is bound to break, but really offroad tires are the main offroading upgrade

spofford

sorry, how much bigger are the moabs then the stock wheels? and how do i glue the tires to the rims, just put the glue on the wall of the tire where the rim would sit?

and correct me if im wrong, but the moabs need a 2.2 rim


so these rims would work correct?
[link]http://www2.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/wti0001p?&I=LXJJ86&P=ML[/link]
[link]http://www2.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/wti0001p?&I=LXJK63&P=ML[/link]

hopefully those links work, but there traxxas 2.2 nylon rims (im new to this)

motorhead91

yea they will work, moabs are a little over an inch taller

spofford

so that would give the jato about half an inch of extra clearence?

i assume these tires have way better grip then the stock tires aswell?

also, would i need to change both front and rear or could i get away with just changing the back for now?

motorhead91

it would give it about an inch more, the overall diameter of the tire is bigger than the stock, you would probably be better off getting all four corners,with the back getting more grip, it wont be tail happy so you wouldnt be able to swing it, the stock tires in the front would make it push like a semi in dirt

motorhead91

its easy to glue, the tire should fit in to a lip on the wheel, and use some thin ca glue and just put some in several different spots aound the tire on both sides

spofford

how long will it take for the glued tires to dry? would overnight be long enough to let the glue dry?

twomanytoys

It only takes about an hour to dry but I let mine sit over night. Once you get the bigger tires you will have to change the shift point because of the bigger diameter. You wont be disappointed with a bigger tire setup. It puts the power under control and wont wheelie every time you hit the throttle.

jatoracing33

mine take less than a minute[8D]...another thing i found out thats helps a little bit is to sand the groove so its a little rougher...just make sure you dont sand it too much

jato.3

will the moab tires work on rpm claw wheels

annie_himself

As long as you remember to buy the 2.2 size.

Mspeed

My modifications are as follows: RPM arms, RPM bumper, Traxxas upgraded chassis, jato box start flywheel with lowered engine(ez start removed), vented clutch bell with shoes in reverse for more bite, bell crank bearings, T-maxx air filter, modified break linkage, modified right side roll hoop stand offs, modified front turn buckle brace, drilled out stinger on the stock 3.3 blue resonator, I have a few sets of tires for different types of off road bashing/racing. I really like the jato for its versitality, it can run well on the street and with some modifications it can make a great high speed off road basher even a great jumper with the right fixes. It is not the strongest truck in stock form, but after some modifications it can be pretty tough. My favorite tire for jumping and taking on higher grass is the IMEX Baja wide and All terrain 2.8's. Make sure you gear down on your cb and spur and set your slipper up right for these big tires, they are 2.7 width and 5 inches in diameter (close to Monster truck size).

46u

My Feedback: (3)

Or just buy a better off road truck! [X(] I raced against a couple Jato on the track and they where no match for my MT. Coarse it is 4 wheel drive but off road what is best?

spofford

will i have th change the shift point up or down? also i read in a different post that the jato is really bad at turning? is this true or have they just not tuned it properly?

twomanytoys

Off road I think it turns great. I have not had a problem with turning. With the shifting bigger tires will make it shift much later so you want to adjust it to shift sooner.

motorhead91

you are right moabs would add a half inch of ride height, not an inch i got confused with the numbers i was looking at,, i ran mine forever with the stock tres in dirt and grass, it was loose, but still somewhat controllable.......people talk about it pushing real bad, but you cant expect something with no downforce and wighs less than 5 pounds to turn well at 50 to 60 plus, aero lift picks the front up